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Can I limit the number of shader units used by my video card? (A shader unit is the part of the hardware which can execute a shader program, where each unit runs in parallel).

I'm interested in this in an OpenGL context, i have an ATI 5770 just in case that you need to know.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ I have absolutely no idea what this question means or what you hope to accomplish. What is a "shader unit" according to you? I've heard of shader programs, shader uniforms and shader vertex attributes, but never a shader unit. \$\endgroup\$
    – knight666
    Commented Aug 18, 2012 at 6:15
  • \$\begingroup\$ @knight666 the term "shader unit" is usually referred to the units that are composing the pipeline on your GPU, more shader units means more power for your GPU, it's 1 of the main characteristic of your GPU that can give you an idea about the performances. It's a term that is always present in every review or tech sheet, for example techpowerup.com/reviews/HIS/HD_5770 \$\endgroup\$
    – user827992
    Commented Aug 18, 2012 at 6:18
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    \$\begingroup\$ @user827992: "it's 1 of the main characteristic of your GPU that can give you an idea about the performances" No. It is a characteristic of your GPU, like clock speed, that people will often throw around as though it means something, but in reality doesn't mean nearly as much without knowing the architecture of the GPU in question. \$\endgroup\$
    – Nicol Bolas
    Commented Aug 18, 2012 at 7:09
  • \$\begingroup\$ @NicolBolas let's say that i was zipping the concept ... \$\endgroup\$
    – user827992
    Commented Aug 18, 2012 at 7:29

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No, there is no way from OpenGL to change how your GPUs distribute your shaders across its internal computing resources. The job of the driver is to find an optimal distribution for the work you provide it.

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